Wangari Maathai/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby Tim is lounging on a hammock, reading a book, and holding a fruit drink. TIM: Ah, nothing like relaxing with a good book under a shady— Tim hears a loud buzzing sound near him. He turns around and sees Moby holding a chainsaw. TIM: Aaagh! A frightened Tim jumps off the hammock and falls down onto the ground. The book lands on top of his head. TIM: Who told you to cut down this tree? MOBY: Beep. Moby gestures to a melting ice sculpture. TIM: An ice sculpture, in the summer. Tim sighs and reads from a typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, my little sister's learning about how trees created peace in Africa. Can you tell me the full story? Thanks, Hope. Hi, Hope. Your sister's talking about Wangari Maathai. She started the conservation movement in her home country of Kenya. An image shows Wangari Maathai as a callout on a map of Africa that shows Kenya. The Kenyan flag is shown in the shape of Kenya. MOBY: Beep. TIM: That's the idea that we need to protect our natural resources. Maathai helped people plant more than 50 million trees. An image shows Maathai with children who are planting trees. TIM: But she improved Kenyans' lives in other ways, too. MOBY: Beep. TIM: She taught them to use more efficient farming methods. She also fought for women's rights. And helped Kenya establish a more democratic government. Images show a plant and water, the female symbol, and a voting box. MOBY: Beep. TIM: It's no surprise she won the Nobel Peace Prize. In 2004, she became the first African woman to do so. An image shows Maathai holding the prize. TIM: She was also the first environmentalist ever to win the award. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Maathai was born in 1940, when Kenya was still a British colony. Like other colonies in Africa, the system was rigged against the native people. A few thousand British settlers controlled most of the farmland. And that was the country's most valuable resource. An animation shows a British farm owner driving to a farm and observing Kenyan field laborers. The farmer relaxes and drinks tea while the workers use hand tools. TIM: After a bloody uprising, Kenya won its independence in 1963. An image shows soldiers in Kenya's uprising. Most are dressed in civilian clothes. MOBY: Beep. TIM: At the time, Maathai was in America; earning a master's degree in biology. An image shows Maathai reading a newspaper announcing the Mau Maus Revolt in Kenya and showing the picture of soldiers in the uprising. TIM: She returned home, hoping to teach and continue her studies. An animation shows Maathai's plane flying to her homeland. TIM: But she soon saw that her country needed her help. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Kenya was still a young nation, and its economy was in chaos. An animation shows Maathai in Kenya observing the distant city skyline. She turns around and is on a street where people are living in poverty. TIM: There were shortages in everything, from jobs to food to fuel. Images show symbols for jobs, food, and fuel. TIM: The land was turning to desert from over-farming and deforestation. The animation shows more of the street Maathai is standing on. It is dry, cracked, and full of garbage, fish bones, and other waste. TIM: With her background in biology, Maathai saw a simple way to address all of these problems. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Plant trees. Lots and lots of them. MOBY: Beep. TIM: You'd be surprised how much trees can do. They prevent erosion, keeping nutrient-rich topsoil in place. That makes it easier to grow crops. They produce their own healthy food, nuts and fruit. And their wood can be used for fuel, or to build homes. An animation shows a tree with a smiling face on its trunk and fruit hanging on it. It's in a forest of healthy trees. Children are shown planting other trees in the forest. A log truck drives down the forest road. MOBY: Beep. Moby holds up a sapling. TIM: Yep, and as they grow into forests, all of these benefits are multiplied. Plus, paying people to gather and replant seeds would create thousands of jobs. MOBY: Beep. TIM: In 1977, Maathai started the Green Belt Movement to promote tree-planting. Her goal was to staff it with as many women as possible. Over 30,000 were trained in forestry, food processing, and farming. A map of Kenya shows a tree and a woman figure. Pop-up images show symbols for forestry, food processing, and farming. TIM: The group's influence spread across Kenya and to nearby countries. The map of Africa shows trees, representing the Green Belt Movement, in five other countries. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yeah, it's pretty awesome, but not everyone was happy. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Kenya had become a dictatorship, under total control of its president, Daniel arap Moi. Moi thought the best course for Kenya was to build it up as much as possible. An animation shows Moi holding up a model building in front of a model of a developed urban area. There are generals standing behind Moi. TIM: So, like most dictators, he went ahead with his plans without getting permission. He let his friends build a golf course in the middle of a national forest. An animation shows a man playing golf on a course set in the middle of a forest. Tropical birds fly by. TIM: He even tried to build a skyscraper and a mall inside Kenya's biggest park. An image shows the skyscraper near a giraffe in a park. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Maathai began to change the Green Belt Movement into a political force. An image shows Maathai with her fist raised leading a group of protesters in a march down a city street. They are carrying the Green Belt Movement banner. TIM: Through protest and publicity, she defeated several of Moi's attempts to develop public land. The protest image is shown next to an image of a Green Belt Movement sign in a forest that reads, "The Green Belt Movement (Freedom Corner) Memorial Trees of Peace. Lest We Forget." MOBY: Beep. TIM: At first, Moi just insulted her publicly. He called her crazy and told her to be "quiet like a good woman." But Maathai was expecting that kind of sexist attack. Women in Kenya weren't supposed to be as outspoken as she was. An image shows Maathai. An image of a speaking mouth with an X placed over it appears next to her. TIM: She lost her first chance at a teaching job just because of her gender. An image next to Maathai shows a chalkboard with an X placed over it. TIM: But she went on to become a professor and even fought for equal pay. An image shows Maathai as a professor in her office. TIM: So she continued to fight Moi by raising awareness. MOBY: Beep. TIM: She led protests against his use of violence to win elections and turned the world's attention to his oppressive government. An animation shows Maathai leading a protest and giving an interview to a news reporter. Demonstrators are behind her holding up signs that read, "Oust Moi." MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yeah, it takes a lot of guts to face down a dictator. Moi used his power to harass Maathai. An animation shows Moi pointing to a picture of Maathai on a flip chart and talking to his generals about her. TIM: She was jailed many times, beaten, and even targeted for assassination. She often had to go into hiding to escape certain death. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Moi chose not to run for reelection in 2002. Instead, he was backing someone who would continue his policies. An image shows a long line at a polling station. TIM: Miraculously, Maathai rallied Kenya against him. An image shows a newspaper announcing Moi was rejected. TIM: They elected a president who was more committed to democracy, as well as the environment. And Maathai won a seat in parliament, with 98 percent of the vote. MOBY: Beep. TIM: After receiving the Nobel, she took her message around the world. She became a global leader for women's rights and conservation. MOBY: Beep. An image shows Maathai with Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Nelson Mandela, and Gordon Brown. TIM: She died in 2011, but her legacy lives on. In the people she fed, the women she educated; and millions of trees like this one. MOBY: Beep. Moby is holding a saw. TIM: You're not really gonna... Moby takes a violin bow and plays music on the saw. Tim's glass breaks. TIM: Okay… Category:BrainPOP Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Social Studies Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Science Transcripts